An Introduction to Effective Project Management | ApnaCourse

No matter whatever the industry you belong to – Manufacturing, Information Technology or Construction Management, the important thing is how to complete the assigned project successfully. Often, a project derails due to various reasons.

We can discuss the below few reasons and understand the importance.

Lack of effective people management skills

Not analyzing the risks properly

Not meeting the stakeholders expectations

Soft Skills or People Management Skills of project managers often plays a vital role in project success and it is equivalent to the technical skills that the project managers are expected to possess. It is all about dealing the people and processes at the appropriate stages/situations in a project life cycle.

A project manager needs to collaborate & communicate properly. The ability to communicate clearly and transforming the information effectively are preferred skills of a project manager. Proper communication can prevent potential problems during project life cycle. It can also prevent disagreements among the various stakeholders. The project manager should know when to communicate necessary information and how to communicate it. Some communications are needed to be scheduled and some may be ad hoc or unscheduled. The project manager needs to send familiar and regular reports often to the team and stakeholders. So, choosing the right mode and preparing the right message, makes the information sharing easy and effective. Be it a document or a status report, it has to express the intention to initiate further actions quickly and explain the message clearly. The very important thing is, it has to reach the intended audience.

Risk Assessment and managing the risks are part of any project and it has to be done throughout the project life cycle. If the project manager fails to forecast the problems in a project, the problems might crop up and it may further lead to project’s failure. Risk management directly associates with project’s performance criteria. The project manager should know to identify potential risks, assess it, prepare a mitigation plan and monitor the occurrence during project tenure. Knowing organization and its risk tolerance level will help the project manager to take necessary decisions during planning stage.

Knowing the members/people involved in a project is also one of key knowledge area in Project Management. The project manager should know the people who are getting affected by the end result of any project. Some members or a group of people may positively or negatively impact the project progress and they are called stakeholders. Managing the expectations of the project stakeholders always leads to project success.

Vittal G Panduranga, PMP,CTFL A PMP® and ISTQB CTFL Certified Professional with over 13 years of experience in the BFSI Sector and having worked in leading organizations. Read More.